The Story of the Dark Forest
by kittyawesomeness
Summary: How the Dark Forest was created. Almost none of this story is mentioned in any of the books, so don't get mad at me if you think it's different than how you think the Dark Forest was created. Sorry if this is a bad summary, cuz I can't summarize anything if my life depended on it. :)


A long, long, long time ago, before the time of the mighty LionClan, TigerClan, and LeopardClan, there lived three tribes. These tribes of cats were bigger and more powerful than the three great Clans. There was one dominant Tribe, the Tribe of Fire and Earth, that ruled over the other two. These other two Tribes were the Tribe of Freezing Ice and the Tribe of Rushing Water.

They lived in the forest, the four current Clans' previous home, back when it was lush and warm. Before the Twolegs came and built the Thunderpaths that cut through it. These Thunderpaths cut the forest in half. By the time the current Clans moved to there, it was half the size it was when the three Tribes and great Clans lived there. As you can imagine, this was so long ago not even the elders of the elders of the elders of the elders knew about it. But, StarClan has chosen me to tell this story and all it has to offer.

As you may know, the Dark Forest is the enemy to StarClan. Cats that cannot make it to StarClan go to the Dark Forest. Before it was formed, a good reason for it to be existent had to take place.

The leader of the Tribe of Fire and Earth was Rock. He was a war leader. He loved a good battle and put his cats through it as often as possible, even over the smallest conflicts. He battled and fought until his Tribe could take no more, then he decided he would fight again before the medicine cats could patch up the hurt warriors. Soon, this Tribe needed three medicine cats to keep up with all the bloodshed. Several warriors died in each battle, and queens were not able to replace the numbers quickly enough. The Tribe eventually fell to the other two, who waited with strong forces until the greater Tribe grew weakened by its constantly dying warriors. But, back then, the warriors were called 'sharpclaws.'

So, since every cat must die eventually; none can live forever, Rock's time came. He died in battle with the heart of a great sharpclaw. But, when it was time to have the sun and moon judge him in all his existence; whether he would be granted access to the Tribe of Endless Hunting or... there really was no alternative to the Tribe of Endless Hunting. But, this cat was not good. He spent too many lives, too much blood, on his own selfish want of power. Even though his Tribe was already dominant, he wished to make it clearer and clearer every time he sent his sharpclaws to battle. So the sun and moon decided he must be punished for his actions in the afterlife. They merged together as they once did so long ago to create the world and skies and stars to create a new place; a place where evil-hearted cats could go to spend their afterlife.

The sun decided it would be dark, very dark. The moon suggested the place to have disgusting green moss with a somewhat glow about it. The sun agreed and merged with the moon. Together, they made the border between the Tribe of Endless Hunting and the new place, which they gave the name of the Dark Forest.

The sun and moon picked up Rock and dropped him in this terrible place that he would have to spend the rest of eternity.

Rock yowled and spitted in rage and wanted to get out of that place, that terrible place. He walked as far as he could one way, but the forest never ended.

So the Dark Forest was born.

All the Tribes died out before the three great Clans ruled the forest. All except for one. The Tribe of Rushing Water left and found a lake where they stayed a while. After that, they moved to the mountains they had crossed to get to the lake. The Tribe of Endless Hunting came with them and no longer watched over the forest where they once lived.

Once LionClan, TigerClan, and LeopardClan ruled the forest, the Clans took over power and their good-doing dead went to a new place made especially by the sun and moon for the Clans called StarClan. But the Dark Forest stayed exactly where it was but expanded to reach all the way to the mountains for the Tribe cats. Rock was joined by several cats from the Tribes and great Clans.

After the three great Clans came the five Clans: ThunderClan, WindClan, RiverClan, ShadowClan, and SkyClan. SkyClan was soon driven out by the other four to a rocky cliff, where they survived for a long time, long enough to be forgotten by the other four. They were driven out because Twolegs were settling on their territory and the other Clans would not give up their land. SkyClan soon failed at living alone and separated into kittypets and rogues. SkyClan was forgotten completely, even by its members, except for a vague descendant called Sky. Before the four Clans moved to the lake, Firestar and Sandstorm helped Sky rebuild SkyClan from the descendants of rogues and kittypets.

But Rock was sorry for his doings later and realized it was his duty to talk to the blind one of ThunderClan, so he asked the sun and moon to allow him to cross over into a neutral place: The tunnels. The tunnels, holding many lost spirits, would be a good place for his spirit to rest also, he decided. So that is where he stayed, keeping track of the cats of the ancient Tribes' deaths and victories of getting out of the tunnels on a stick, which was later found by Jayfeather.

SPOILER: SORRY! IF YOU HAVE NOT READ EVERY SINGLE BOOK IN THE SERIES, DO NOT READ THE REST OF THIS PLEASE. IT WILL RUIN EVERYTHING FOR YOU. (:

Tigerstar eventually died and was banished to the Dark Forest. He took charge and began training living cats in their dreams to prepare for the battle between the Dark Forest warriors and sharpclaws and the living Clans, the ancient Tribe cats, and StarClan.

But, Tigerstar was defeated and Firestar was killed in the process.


End file.
